You will probably be the best judge of this. People who mediate
with us do so at different stages in the process of separation. Some come to
us when they are not even sure whether or not to separate but want to explore
all the practical consequences of doing so to help them make their decision.
Others come to us soon after their decision to separate, either while still
living in the same house or after one of them has left the family home. Sometimes,
emotions are too raw for one or other of the separating couple to consider mediation
at such an early stage and they will need time to deal with the emotional consequences
of the breakdown of the relationship before they can consider the practical
consequences. Many come to mediation after they have taken some legal advice
but others do so before seeing a solicitor. Most people start mediation before
commencing legal proceedings (other than divorce proceedings) because they realise
that once legal proceedings have started then the costs are likely to escalate
and the adversarial nature of court proceedings may make it harder to engage
in the mediation process. However, the main rule that it is never too late to
mediate and we would encourage any separating couple to consider mediating whatever
stage they may be at.
